Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

Overall U.S. Incidence of HIV Stable; Racial Differences Still Exist

HIV incidence in the U.S. "flattened" in 2004, falling from 22.8 new cases per 100,000 people in 2001 to 20.7 per 100,000 last year, but blacks and Hispanics are still more likely to be newly diagnosed with HIV than whites, according to CDC data from 33 states published on Friday in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the Atlanta-Journal Constitutionreports. HIV incidence is highest among blacks despite decreases in the rate of new diagnoses every year between 2001 and 2004 (McKenna, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 11/18).

The rate of newly reported HIV cases among blacks has decreased an average of 5% annually since 2001, declining from 88.7 cases per 100,000 people in 2001 to 76.3 cases per 100,000 in 2004 (Stobbe, AP/Philadelphia Inquirer, 11/18). However, blacks in 2004 were 8.4 times as likely as whites to be newly diagnosed with HIV.

Ronald Valdiserri, acting director of CDC's National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention, said, "Overall, new HIV diagnoses continue to disproportionately and severely impact African Americans, both men and women," adding, "This is not new, but it is critical that we do not become complacent" (Maugh, Los Angeles Times, 11/18).

Hispanics, who accounted for 18% of new HIV diagnoses between 2001 and 2004, had an incidence rate more than three times that of whites in 2004 (Ricks, Long Island Newsday, 11/17).

HIV incidence among Asian and Pacific Islanders increased an average of 9% during the study period, but the group's 2004 incidence rate of 7.2 per 100,000 was the lowest among any racial or ethnic population group (Espinoza et al., MMWR, 11/18).

New Diagnoses Increase Among MSM in 2004

Although the number of new HIV diagnoses among men who have sex with men remained "relatively stable" between 2001 and 2003, the number of new cases among MSM increased 8% from 2003 to 2004, the Washington Times reports (Price, Washington Times, 11/18). However, CDC said the increase might indicate that more MSM are seeking HIV testing rather than an increase in the number of HIV-positive MSM (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 11/18).

CDC also said that the number of new cases among injection drug users decreased 9% during the study period, and cases linked to heterosexual contact decreased 4%, the San Francisco Chroniclereports (Russell, San Francisco Chronicle, 11/18). CDC attributed the drop in the number of cases among IDUs in part to a decreasing number of diagnoses in the group in New York City, where programs such as needle-exchanges have been implemented (Long Island Newsday, 11/17).

Data Collection

The data were collected from 33 states that have had confidential, names-based reporting systems for at least four years, the Journal-Constitution reports. CDC is using HIV cases to try to comprehend the growth of the U.S. epidemic.

The agency previously tracked AIDS cases but found that data less useful as new drug therapies lengthened the time between HIV infection and progression to AIDS (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 11/18). For the first time, the report included statistics from New York, where about 20% of all new U.S. cases occur (Long Island Newsday, 11/17).

Valdiserri noted that because the report includes data from New York, it is not comparable to previous years' reports (Los Angeles Times, 11/18).

California, Illinois and several other states that traditionally have had high HIV incidence rates also were not included in the data. In 2002, 10% of all U.S. AIDS cases occurred in California and 5% of all AIDS cases nationwide occurred in Illinois, the Miami Herald reports (Tasker, Miami Herald, 11/18).